The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Grange never follows fickle fair food fads
Retired Durhamville man has been smoking beef at Fair since the 1970s
GEDDES >> State Fair visitors, surrounded by food vendors selling deep-fried Twinkies, chocolate- covered bacon, Dippin’ Dots and rainbowcolored cotton candy, may think there isn’t anywhere on the grounds to buy real food, but they’d be wrong. One place is a large corner stand across from the dairy cattle barn where workers takes pride in serving tasty and wholesome food, something they’ve been doing in the same location since the early 1970s.
The Grange Ye Old Ox Roast restaurant has no deep fryer and no interest in joining the latest junk food fad. “We’ve always been noted for real food and our dinner is balanced,” said Roland Shea Sr., of Munnsville, coordinator and manager of the Ox Roast stand for 19 years. The stand sells sliced or barbecued beef sandwiches with a baked potato, applesauce, salad and ice cream. The also offer hot dogs, burgers, and peanutbutter-and-jelly sandwiches, “that’s about as real as you can get,” Shea said.
They also make milk shakes one at a time from fresh milk and ice cream. “Imagine that,” Shea marveled. “Nobody’s ever caught on to just doin’ it right.”.As his enthusiastic crew yells customer orders to each other, Shea, a New York State Grange member since 1961, prowls the stand wearing a cap with the slogan “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner.” It’s his job to make sure everything flows smoothly. He said he counts customers returning year after year.
The stand is staffed by an all-volunteer crew. Most cooks and counter staff are Grange members there to raise funds as all profits go to the organization.
“We’ve got some friends too that come in and help us,” Shea explained. “We don’t care as long as they’re warm and alive. It helps us do the programs that we’ve got. This is usually the biggest fundraiser and it’s the last fundraiser of the year. We do a lot of community service like an art and photo competition, support the Future Farmers of America and advocate for legislation that is beneficial to our members.”
The Grange is a nonprofit, nonpartisan fraternal organization that advocates for rural and agricultural families. The 23-member Pleasant Valley chapter meets regularly in a stone building owned by the organization on Route 20 between Madison and Sangerfield. “It’s very family-oriented, Shea explained.
“Women are a vital part of the Grange. They hold positions of power.”
Shea, 69, is among the non-farming Grange members, having retired when Oneida Ltd. closed its Sherrill plant, leaving him six months shy of 40 years on the job.
Married 48 years and the father of one son, he’s one of over 5,000 New York Grange members and sits on its state executive committee.
He works about one month every year as volunteer manager at the Ox Roast stand.
He starts before the Fair opens to get ready for crowds of returning customers.
“We painted this year, did trim work and repairs and put in some plumbing,” he explained.
Many Fair workers and early-bird visitors have discovered there is beef is still turning slowly in the smoker at 7 a.m. when they open for a roadside-diner-style breakfast, serving eggs, ham, bacon and several kinds of pancakes topped with genuine maple syrup.
It’s important to start the 70-pound slabs of beef in the smoker early.
“It’s prime top round,” Shea said. “It’s got to go all night. We put it on at 10 at night. It’s probably 150 pounds of meat we cook every day. You gotta sell sandwiches every minute or you on’t make nothing.”